West Indies will play against India in a limited-overs series where all-rounder Sherfane Rutherford on Friday said his team has been trying to adapt to the Indian pitches to give India a tough fight. The three-match T20 series will start in Hyderabad on December 6, in Thiruvananthapuram (December 8) and Mumbai (December 11) respectively.
“I am happy to get the opportunity. Preparation have been coming along well, we had a lot of time to train and to get some work done. So over the past few days we have been putting in some hard work and are looking forward to give our best against India,” Rutherford told reporters.
“Most of the Indian pitches are good wickets to bat on. We have been working on adapting to the pitches so we can improve our game. I don’t think players are thinking too much about the World Cup or IPL, it’s just about performance and everything else will follow from there,” he added.
The West Indies team has been in India for the last one month as they were playing their bilateral series against Afghanistan. Sherfane Rutherford, who was part of the T20 series against Afghanistan, said he has been taking batting tips from the captain Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell.
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“My role in the middle order is similar (to that of Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell). I have been working with them, talking to them and learning a lot. My game is about adapting and learning,” said he. “KP (Pollard) is such a cool leader. He’s somebody you can talk to. Someone, who would listen to you always. (He) brings a different energy to training sessions and the guys look up to him.”
Although the T20 World Cup will take place next year in Australia Rutherford said he is not thinking that far as of now.
“T20 World Cup is a while from now but every series we look to take something out of it. We look to give our best and take it one step at a time,” he said. “Bowling is something that I like to do. Now I’m comfortable bowling but its something comes after my batting but it gives me confidence. I want to play all three formats but everything is (about the right) timing so I am doing the hard work and hopefully I will get my opportunity when I deserve it.”
He has also batted for franchise cricket and he thinks this league provides a platform for all the players who fail to get selected in the national team.
“I have not been in a situation where I had any problem with the management style but I think franchise cricket is good because not everyone might play for West Indies or their countries. So I think franchise cricket helps a lot of players, especially players that cannot make it to the national team,” Rutherford said. “I don’t see any problems with franchise cricket. May be sometimes it gets a bit frustrating as you may not stay as much free as you want to but I think it’s good and in everything you have to make sacrifices.”
